Paste up Task

As part of a mini task set by Joesph Frascina, we learnt about the time between typesetting and the digital world — one which was called paste up. This was the technique used before our time to layout editorials, including type, illustrations and photography.

We watched a short video about the method of using paste up and I can confirm that I am glad that I live in the time period I do. This would take patience and accuracy to cut out text and re-lay it so the editor is happy with it. I can assume that this process could be extremely long winded.

We also had a recap about Grids and layouts. We learnt how to use them as well as examples which I jotted down below. This was something I needed reminding of, as it has been a year since we last covered it.

As part of our task, we had to use this technique to create a double page spread for a band interview. Due to the COVID times we live in, I was at home for this workshop and without Ink in my printer. Luckily, those who were joining online could create it digitally if they didn’t have access to a printer — so I was saved. With the PDF given to use we had to create two layouts. One using a grid of choice and the second in a more experimental style similar to ones of David Carson or Chris Ashworth.

These were the examples I created:

I thought this task very fun. I know I didn’t get the full effect of paste up, but I feel I have enough insight into it that I can see how hard the technique is. Even with these examples, I had to chop up bits of text in order for them to fit. I really enjoyed the ‘breaking the grid’ task and being able to experiment with my design more. I also feel this looks more eye-catching and was fun to be able to experiment with various digital techniques. This task was helpful to get back in the swing of editorials and using grids. I need to look at more examples before I start creating my own ideas and really experiment with layouts and grids. But I feel this was a great starting point to get back into the swing of things and we can move on from this point.

2 November 2020 — LMC